


And Carry on Afterwards

by mimble



Category: Cabin Pressure
Genre: Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Post St. Petersburg, screenplay format
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-28
Updated: 2012-10-28
Packaged: 2017-11-17 06:27:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/548594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mimble/pseuds/mimble
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fill for a prompt misread on the cabin pressure fic meme. Cleaned up and edited here.</p>
<p>ARTHUR: He never hit me.<br/>DOUGLAS: No?</p>
            </blockquote>





	And Carry on Afterwards

**SCENE:** On the trip back home from St Petersburg. Douglas is alone on the flight deck as Martin is taking a break in the cabin. Carolyn is having a rest in 3C and Arthur is in the galley, making Douglas his coffee. There’s only another hour or so to go.

Arthur knocks quietly on the door to the flight deck and then pushes it open with his hip. After he has set Douglas’ mug down, he sits in Martin’s seat with his own cup of tea. Douglas’ mug is striped with white and navy blue while Arthur’s has “TEA” emblazoned on the side in colourful letters. Arthur hugs the mug to his chest in silence for a few minutes. Douglas reaches down to flick a switch - 

ARTHUR: He never hit me.

DOUGLAS: _(starts, but doesn't look over)_ No?

ARTHUR: Not properly anyway. Just a clip round the ear when I annoyed him, but that’s normal isn't it? It’s just to remind you not to annoy people, it’s my fault I kept forgetting what annoyed him; he only did it so I would remember.

DOUGLAS: Arthur-

ARTHUR: I did try to remember, I made a list and stuck it on the fridge but it fell down and someone threw it away. I didn't want to make Dad angry, he was nice to me a lot of the time; he bought me loads of expensive things like smart clothes and sports things to play with. The clothes were so I could look smart when he took Mum and me out to parties or for special dinners, and I did try to learn to play football and tennis but they were really difficult and no one ever wanted to play with me. I suppose that was my fault too _(scowls down at his tea)_ , I should have practiced more, so Dad could have been proud of me.

DOUGLAS: I’m sure he was proud of you for some things, Arthur.

ARTHUR: He wasn't, I thought he might have been, but he never came to school plays or my birthday parties; he was always too busy he said. And anyway, it was always too loud and messy at birthday parties, he said they were silly. He might have come to see me in the school play if I was the main person, but I wasn’t. He said he would come when I got the award for being the top of the year but he never did. Mum filmed it though so he could have watched it later, I suppose.

DOUGLAS: He might have watched it, you never know.

ARTHUR: _(shakes his head)_ I don't think he did, he didn’t care. I was a clown, he said, _you’re an idiot, there’s no point you going to that fancy school_. He was only really nice when we had people from his work round for dinner. We would all dress up in our smart clothes and Dad would smile all the time and tell the people about how I was top of the class or how I was captain of the football team even though I wasn’t. He said he had to lie to them, even though it was bad, because I was a rubbish son and I couldn't get anything right. He didn't want to see me when he and Mum got divorced either, there was an option on the forms and he left it blank _(blinks)_ I mean, it’s not that I wanted to see him, I just wanted to know if Dad actually wanted me, but he didn’t. It’s my fault; I'm too stupid to be good.

DOUGLAS: _(sighing)_ You really didn't deserve that, Arthur. There’s not a bad bone in your body, he’s the one in the wrong. He’s been in the wrong all your life; you're in the right, Arthur. You do see that, don’t you?

ARTHUR: _(angry now)_ I do see, but it doesn't matter because he never hit me, did he? _(Looks down at tea)_ None of it really matters because he never hurt me. I shouldn't be this upset just because I spoke to him. _(Turns head to look at Douglas)_ People are mean all the time and no one else gets this worked up. Sometimes I wish he had hit me, just so that I'd be allowed to be upset when I see him but that’s ridiculous _(pause, pulls his feet up onto the seat and rests his forehead against his knees and breathes slowly. He starts to speak again, quieter now)_. There must be something wrong with me to think that, everyone else can cope with mean people but I can't because I'm stupid. He never hit me so I shouldn't be upset, it’s just stupid. I'm just being stupid _(chokes on last word and shuts his eyes, the tea sits precariously on one knee)._

DOUGLAS: _(reaches over and takes the mug out of Arthur’s hands)_ Arthur, Arthur, shhh _(after putting the mug down, reaches back over to take one of Arthur’s hands)_. He may not have hurt you physically but he did upset you, didn't he?

ARTHUR: _(nods miserably, hair shifting up against his trouser legs.)_

DOUGLAS: There, see? So of course you would be upset if you saw him again, he spent the majority of your childhood disappointing and terrorising you. Even I would be upset if I were in your position. But it’s alright now; we've left him in St. Petersburg with his tail between his legs, he won't bother us for a while yet, I should think.

ARTHUR: _(sniffs dejectedly)_ He still phones me to try and buy G-ERTI every year.

DOUGLAS: Don’t answer the phone; get him to leave a message. If he keeps bothering you then you can pass the calls onto me, I think I can handle him.

ARTHUR: _(looking up again)_ You'd do that? 

DOUGLAS: Yes, I will.

ARTHUR: But why?

DOUGLAS Because, Arthur, you are, without a shadow of a doubt, the most brilliant son someone could have asked for.


End file.
